


Idle Chatter

by everythingmurky



Category: Broadchurch
Genre: Attempt at Humor, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-20
Updated: 2017-10-20
Packaged: 2019-01-20 11:15:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12431634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everythingmurky/pseuds/everythingmurky
Summary: Stakeouts always seem to make Hardy's companions philosophical, much to his annoyance. Only this time, he ends up involved in it.





	Idle Chatter

**Author's Note:**

> Thinking about deleting my other story gave me Ellie's first line, because I feel like I shouldn't have written it or I would have to go back and fix almost the whole thing... I'm at the point where deleting it seems the only solution.
> 
> So I did this, in part to abuse author's notes because I am thinking of deleting the other one.
> 
> And also because if I do, I wanted something... else as my last story.

* * *

“You ever wish you could change what you've done? Go back and fix things?”

Hardy gave Miller a look. He did not know what it was with surveillance that made everyone so bloody philosophical, but he hated it. He'd given up doing these damned things because of it, assigning them to any DS or DC he could rather than do it himself.

He might not have minded half as much if he'd done this alone, but every bloody time he had someone else in the car with him, they felt the need to talk.

No, not just talk, to philosophize.

“No,” Hardy said, since he had no intention of discussing it. She'd start on his divorce or something next, and that was not happening. “It's not possible.”

She looked over at him. “I don't believe you.”

“Miller—”

“Even just the fact that you're pointing out to me that it's not possible means you've thought about it,” she said. “What would you change? Your heart? Sandbrook? The divorce?”

“What is the point of this, Miller? If you had the ability to change any part of your life or history, why would you stop at only one?” Hardy shook his head. “The idea that if you could do it, you only do it once is ridiculous. Limitations on the use of whatever theoretical means you have of getting you back in time is a plot device. It's how they make their movie or write their book, but it's not real. If you could do it once, you'd do it again. The machine getting destroyed, or the power being limited... that's all just so that they can tell a bloody story.”

“Should have known you'd be a cynic.”

“Oh, don't start,” Hardy said. “Just because I don't want to talk while we're waiting for a suspect to move doesn't mean I am a cynic. I means I don't want to talk. You and everyone else, you sit there and think people need conversation. That you're bored without it. Surveillance is boring. You accept that, but you do it because you need to see what happens or you need to find someone. You don't do it to chat or to become friends like those irritating films.”

Miller seemed amused by that. “I can see you never made any friends doing this, that's for sure. You know, if you were a little less of a knob—”

“Shut up, Miller.”

“No, I'm serious,” she said, still smiling. “You had some interesting points about the plot devices and the ability to do time travel more than once. If you were willing to actually talk instead of shutting down the conversation, you would be a whole lot less irritating.”

“I'm irritating?” Hardy demanded. “You're distracting us and making pointless talk, but I'm irritating? I should leave you here. That's what I should do. You can watch outside in the bloody rain for all I care.”

“You are such a bastard.”

He grunted. “Just worry about the bastard we're looking for.”

“Fine,” she muttered, shaking her head in annoyance. She looked back out the window. “Do you think he'll come soon?”

“Miller—”

“Or is time some sort of abstract concept that has no meaning and you don't want to discuss it?”

“Bloody hell.”


End file.
